House of Lancaster

The House of Lancaster was the name of two cadet branches of the House of Plantagenet; one, descended from Edmund Crouchback, existed from 1267 to 1361; the second, descended from John of Gaunt, existed from 1362 to 1471. In 1399, John's son Henry usurped the throne from King Richard II of England, bring the House of Lancaster to power. The Lancastrians ruled England from 1399 to 1461 and from 1470 to 1471, and the Lancastrians engaged in a civil war - the Wars of the Roses - with the House of York from 1455 to 1487. The execution of Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales at the Battle of Tewkesbury and the subsequent death of King Henry VI of England in prison led to the House of Lancaster becoming extinct, and the Yorkists ruled England until the House of Tudor seized power in 1485.